The Waters family operate a dairy farm just outside Crookstown, Co Kildare. It is very much a family-run farm, headed up by Ger and his wife Maura with great support from their sons John, Brian, Alex and daughter Emma.

The finishing touches are now being made to a state-of-the-art 192-cow cubicle shed on the farm.

The family are very satisfied with the positive impact this shed is having on the management of their dairy enterprise.

As winter milk suppliers, the family were keen to improve winter accommodation

The Waters milk over 300 cows during the year, with the herd split almost evenly between autumn and spring calving.

Cow numbers have been growing steadily over the years and the existing housing facilities were coming under severe pressure.

As winter milk suppliers, the family were keen to improve winter accommodation so that cows could live in a healthy environment and be comfortable with unrestricted access to fodder.

The new cubicle shed is designed to satisfy all of those prerequisites. It is built to a very high standard and is certainly constructed to withstand the passing of time.

Picture one, two and figure one

The design of the shed is simple. Cows are fed on both sides, the cubicles are located in the middle of the structure and slurry is scraped to an 8ft deep slurry tank at one end.

An over-ground circular slurry store will be built next to ensure there is adequate slurry storage.

The standout features of the shed are the Easyfix rubber barriers and cubicles used throughout.

The decision to use rubber rather than steel was an expensive one, but Ger believes it will pay dividends in the long run.

Picture two.

“Our cows are producing over 7,000l of milk throughout the winter. They are not dry at this time of year like many Irish farms, so we needed the shed to be very comfortable,” he said.

In the older sheds they had issues from time to time with cows getting caught in the steel cubicles, so the hope is this will not be an issue with the new rubber ones.

“I don’t really like steel barriers either because cows are always banging off them and sometimes getting hurts in the old sheds,” said Ger.

The new shed is fully open on both sides and a roof overhang of 2.4m helps to keep the feed dry. The shed itself is very high, measuring 4.2m at the eaves and 8.7m at the apex.

“As you know, air is a disinfectant so getting as much air as possible into the area was a must,” he said.

Feed space is important and where it is limited it can result in negative outcomes

There is enough space for all the cows to feed at the same time.

Feed space is important and where it is limited it can result in negative outcomes such as bullying and the requirement to constantly top up fodder in front of cows.

The Waters use a forage wagon to feed their cows and feeding is very straightforward with the long passage and spacious site to navigate.

Pictures three and four

As mentioned, the standout features in the shed are the rubber cubicles and barriers. But there are other clever bits and pieces that only become apparent when the shed is studied in more detail.

For example rubber matting is fixed into the floor of the cow passages. This means when the cow is feeding each leg is standing on rubber.

There is even rubber matting at the crossover points where the drinkers will be situated.

Picture three.

Alan Guing from Tommy Guing Construction Ltd said they left a recess for the mats when they were pouring the concrete floor.

They also used an imprint roller on the concrete to provide grip for the cows in the passages. The cow passages are scraped clean using Alfco rope scrapers.

The Waters decided to go with rope scrapers as they are very quiet when in use and running costs are low.

Picture four.

Outside the gable end of the shed where the motors for the scrapers are located, a depression in the concrete prevents manure making its way on to the concrete apron.

Picture five

The roof of the structure is impressive and has also some clever features. O’Dwyer Steel from Dundrum, Co Tipperary, did all the steel work.

Fibre cement sheeting was used throughout and bracing was not spared. Fibre cement is a more expensive option compared to corrugated sheeting but should have a longer lifespan and will not drip after a frosty night.

One clever addition to the roof is a steel grid at the apex which prevents birds from sitting under the canopy and defecating on the cubicles below.

Picture five.

Another clever idea that will really pay dividends in the future is the gutter supports.

This is quite a large roof and the gutters will be carrying a lot of weight after a heavy shower of rain.

So instead of being tacked on to the side of the roof at the eaves, the gutters are sitting on the steel purlins.

Cost

Ger said the shed was expensive. However, he said it is already paying dividends in terms of greater milk yield (up 15% compared to 2018) and much healthier animals.

The Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme (TAMS) II will help to take down the overall cost with a grant of €48,000 available.

With the grant taken into account, the Waters are €275,000 out of pocket.

Breaking down the cost, concrete work including the 8ft deep tank cost €110,000, the cubicles, mats and barriers cost €64,000 excluding VAT, the shed structure cost €135,000 excluding VAT and the rope scrapers cost €14,500 excluding VAT.